Some DIY power cords

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  • polkatese
    polkatese Posts: 6,767
    edited May 2004
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    Originally posted by pjdami

    The DH Labs cord is a snap to build. You don't need to use any shrink wrap for strain protection at the plug ends because you can use the stock screw down clamp which comes with the plugs.
    I chose not to use any techflex either because it comes with a clear plastic coating surrounding the main cable construction and looks very attractive.

    Next up will be the DH Labs vs. the much anticipated Carol cable wire showdown. Everything the same here (Marinco plugs) just a difference in the wire.

    That's is one very attractive pc, Paul! Great job! I am extremely interested in reading your upcoming shoot out (Carol 3/10) against DH, since I have made a couple Carol's myself. Your DH is indeed very attractive and well built. When are you going to start taking order? ;)
    I am sorry, I have no opinion on the matter. I am sure you do. So, don't mind me, I just want to talk audio and pie.
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  • mantis
    mantis Posts: 17,065
    edited May 2004
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    When are you going to start taking order?

    waaaaaaaaaaa

    Funny I have took the liberity to name his cords

    The pjdami cord

    Dan
    Dan
    My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 49,880
    edited May 2004
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    Paul,

    You have been a busy boy! I just read this thread for the first time and I must say I admire your zeal at finding the best cord for your gear. I'm going to keep a watch here to see what your impressions are with the DIY cords vs a pre-made.

    Sorry Dan, but Steve's name, "Pjdami Power Python" has got a ring to it. :D

    Jesse
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."

    President of Club Polk

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  • mantis
    mantis Posts: 17,065
    edited May 2004
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    I'm all for it........
    Dan
    My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
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  • pjdami
    pjdami Posts: 1,894
    edited May 2004
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    I have done some comparisons the past few days with the Carol Cable, the DH Labs, and the stock B&K wire. I am not ready to post the results yet. It was weird using different recordings I noticed more differences and on other recordings the results were not as defined. Poorer recordings maybe. I was listening to some older stuff from the 80's. I do think the Carol Cable power cord only has about 30 hours on it so back to the burn in she goes.

    Tomorrow I will do the DH Labs vs. the Venhaus Flav II which I know is burned in properly.

    P.
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  • mantis
    mantis Posts: 17,065
    edited May 2004
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    What I noticed when comparing the stock B&K cord to the Kimber was dynamic range and overall clarity.

    Dynamic range seemed to be the biggest factor on my system.]

    Dan
    Dan
    My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited May 2004
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    Paul,
    Thanks for the tip ont he DH Lab power plus cable, Purchased some & made a two 1.5 meter Power cables & replaced the power cable on my yamaha dvd player with the dh lab cable. The DH Lab cable is well built & easy to work with. The cable is labled 12 guage but seems to be larger. I couldnt fit it into a 12g ring terminal, but it fit well in a 10g terminal? Is the cable realy 12g? I have been breaking in the cable for 2 days & for the cost this cable is a great deal! It is not as open as my Kimber PK10 & the sound stage seems slightly smaller but I dont think this cable & ends are fully broken in yet either. My kimber I use wattgate audio grade plug ends & IEC but on the DH Im using wattgate 320 iec the lower grade & marinco hospital plugend. My kimber costs close to $380 for a 1.5m legnth compared to $75 for the DH 1.5m cable. The cable also dosnt use any black insulation that touches bare the wire! Most manufactures dont use black due to the carbon in the black & that changes the preformance. The cable is made up of 3 cables 12g but if you take a look there is 3 bunches, 2 of them are made up of medium wire & one made up of fine wire! Replaced my DVD PC & wow! Had to make a connector to the board & some soldering was needed but well worth it! Ill post a pic as soon as I have some time! Again a/c current is so important. Its great to have more than you need so your equipment works at its best! The grey & red cable on the left is the DH LAb The white & black cable that is not connected is the stock PC, w/the DH pc noticable improvement! Always in search of better pic & sound!dh%20cable%20yam.jpg
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  • pjdami
    pjdami Posts: 1,894
    edited May 2004
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    ezc,

    Glad to hear the cable worked out for you for the money. Hard to beat at that price. I do believe the wire is 12 gauge as the Carol cable is 10 gauge and is a little thicker and harder to work with. The strands of copper seem a little finer on the DH Labs wire than the Carol cable. Well, you answered one question for me and that is a comparison with the Kimber and gold plugs. Big difference in cost there though. Since I need 8 plugs total for all three of my rigs that would be an exorbitant amount of money to spend on power cables. Makes you wonder if it is more of an influence of the gold plugs doesn't it?

    ATC, good for you too. Yes nice wire for the green for sure. The DH Labs cable is a little mellower than the Venhaus Flavor II. Tone that is... a little warmer sounding. Both have great three dimensionality to them even more so than the Carol cable I find. The Carol cable is a nice upgrade over stock. The bass is a little tighter than stock but the sound is more two dimensional to me compared to the Venhaus and DH Labs. Tone is not bad about on par with the Venhaus. Not bright or edgy at all. That is why I'm giving it some more burn in to see if the soundstage opens up more. So far my two favorite ones are the Venhaus and the DH Labs. Its really a pick 'em here.. personal preference on the tone. Not night and day differences here.. kind of subtle.

    The Crump power cords I am using on my preamps and cd players and haven't sat down to test them out against the bigger thicker cables yet.

    I don't think I posted a picture of the Venhaus Flavor II. A royal pain to put together but it certainly has a "wow" look and sound to it. A little more forward sounding than the DH Labs, good bass, and wide soundstage.
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited May 2004
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    Paul,
    Heres a pic of one of the PK10 I use & the DH Lab Power plus. I put techflex over the clear tubing for the PC, the cable dosnt stick as much to to the rack & other smoth surfaces. The Kimbers have all Wattgate Audio Grade Plug ends & IEC's. The DH Lab power plus have hospital & wattgate lower grade ends. The DH still dosnt sound as open as the kimber, Ill let it run a few more days & listen again. dhand%20pk5.jpg
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  • pjdami
    pjdami Posts: 1,894
    edited May 2004
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    ezc,

    Those look awesome. Great build quality. Looks like you are having as much fun as I am with this too. Where are you comparing / swapping cords on the power to the amp or the cd player?

    I've been running all my tests through the Monster Power Center 7000 hooked up to my power amp (between power center and amp).

    Paul
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited May 2004
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    Paul,
    Im having fun "I think"! I have come to a conclusion that most stock pc's are ok but dont let the equipment run at its best! I have replaced all pc in my system, even if it donst have a IEC. The dvd & Mits 55 tv I needed to make a connector, the Tjoeb CDP has a direct connect but I still needed to make the pk10 fit. I have been looking for a pc that didnt cost an arm & a leg for all the regular equipment that donst have an IEC connector & the DH lab works great & price is right too. All my equip is plugged into my 7000 & the changes were noticable. Friends think I have gone nuts by replacing the pc in the dvdp with the large dh cable & making the connector to plug in, but its worth it! Small improvements all add up! Better Picture & Better Sound!

    Thnaks
    Ace
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  • lonwa
    lonwa Posts: 83
    edited May 2004
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    I found Bob's original posting about the DIY power cord. The one part I am missing is the prefered part for the power end of the cable (not the IEC), the 3 prong 15A side of the cable. Which ones do you use?


    Thanks

    Lonwa
    Sometimes good command decisions get compromised by bad emotional responses."
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited May 2004
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    LONWA,
    The plug ends I use are the Wattgate 330i very good plug end very good conductivity gold plated but costly! On my mid level power cables I use marinco hospital grade, the contacts are not gold plated but are still good. Gold plating makes the contacts smooth so you get a larger contact surface area. The hospital grade ends are about $12-$13 at Parts Express. I have tried the Kimber PK10 with wattgate audio grade ends (iec & plug) pluged into a wattgate 381 outlet to my receiver & also PK10 with Marinco Hospital grade ends plugged into the same outlet. There is a small improvement with the Audio Grade ends, the sound wasnt as compressed with the audio grade ends but the hospital grade did a good job. At first I thaught the hospital ends needed further break in but even after a few weeks it still sounded slightly congested with the hsptl ends. If you want maximum preformance I would say Wattgate audio ends although expensive, if you want good preformance at a moderate cost Marinco ends. Look at the pic above The Green Kimber pc has Wattgate audio grade ends & the DH lab cable with the grey nylon shield has the Marinco ends. Hope this helps!
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  • pjdami
    pjdami Posts: 1,894
    edited May 2004
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    lonwa,

    If you want to stick to the "original" Bob Crump power cord recipe you will need the Pass & Seymour 5266-X three prong outlet. You can find the parts at DIYcable for 10 bucks:

    http://www.diycable.com/main/default.php?cPath=89_21

    Step by step instructions on how to assemble are here:

    http://www.audiotweaks.com/diy/bobcrump_pc/page01.htm

    The dude in the assembly pics used a different IEC. I stuck with the original recipe although the Schurter 4781.0100 is the IEC used in some of the Cardas cords.

    For main power to amps or high powered receivers, I like the DH Labs or the Venhaus the best. I am using the Crump on all my cd players and preamps. The DH labs has a slightly warmer tone to it than the Venhaus I find on my system and to my ears. I still can't believe I can hear the difference but it is there. This is a very nice and affordable cable that can be built relatively cheap.

    Make sure to check your cable after construction with a multimeter and that you leave enough insulation inside the IEC so that no short circuits can occur. There should be no bare wire sticking out of the plastic "runners" inside the IEC. I was extremely careful when making these cords. The wattgates EZC talks about or the Marincos are easier to work with. Just screw the wires in.

    Have fun dude. I sure did.

    Paul

    p.s. here's the link to the original Crump post that I have. He lists all the original parts here:

    http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/cables/messages/7885.html

    p.p.s. For the drain wire, I chose to not hook it up on the IEC end. Just on the 3 prong wall outlet end. Just like the dude explains in the step by step.
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  • lonwa
    lonwa Posts: 83
    edited May 2004
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    Thanks guys,

    I think I am going to give them a try. I have the stock Parasound PC that came with the amp, plus an XLO Ref. 10A cable, so I will be able to see how these stack up against each other.


    Lonwa
    Sometimes good command decisions get compromised by bad emotional responses."
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  • lonwa
    lonwa Posts: 83
    edited June 2004
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    Quick question for you guys,

    I want to burn in multiple PCs at a time, but I have only one piece of AV equipment I can use them on (my AMP). Can I plug these guys into my computer (or monitor) and have it burn them in? Or does it need to be an AV component?

    Just a thought to speed up the process


    Thanks

    Lonwa
    Sometimes good command decisions get compromised by bad emotional responses."
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  • dcarlson
    dcarlson Posts: 1,740
    edited June 2004
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    I've read that monitors work well. I think you can pretty much burn them in on anything you can connect them to.
    SDA-2a, Anthem Pre-2L, Anthem Amp 1, MF A324 DAC, Rotel RCD1070

    Senn HD650 Cardas, Mapletree Audio Ear+ HD2, Kimber KS1030, Bel Canto DAC2, M-Audio Transit, Laptop.
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited June 2004
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    Paul,
    Have you compared the Carol cable to any of your other cables? Im curious to know how it sounds compared to the other cables. If you have had a chance to listen let me know what you think!

    Ace
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  • rlam01
    rlam01 Posts: 38
    edited June 2004
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    Originally posted by ezc
    Paul,
    I have replaced all pc in my system, even if it donst have a IEC. The dvd & Mits 55 tv I needed to make a connector, the Tjoeb CDP has a direct connect but I still needed to make the pk10 fit. ....
    Friends think I have gone nuts by replacing the pc in the dvdp with the large dh cable & making the connector to plug in, but its worth it! Small improvements all add up! Better Picture & Better Sound!

    Can you post any pics of your mods? Where did you get the parts and what tools were needed for the IEC installation?
    Center-CSI3 Mains-R50 Rears-R30
    Sub-PSW303 Receiver-Integra 5.4 DTR
    HDTV-JVC AV48WP74

    ---- Fight On!----
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  • pjdami
    pjdami Posts: 1,894
    edited June 2004
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    EZC,

    I am using the Carol Cable DIY power cord for the subwoofer. When I compared it to the Venhaus and DH Labs for the front speaker amps I felt that tonally it was on par with the Venhaus but I didn't feel like it had the three dimensionality to the sound. Compared to the DH Labs I feel that it was a little brighter sounding and the soundstage was more compressed. I felt like it needed more burn in which it has been doing. I will see if more burn in made any difference. It had about 50 hours on it the first time I tried should easily have over 100 hours by now.

    Paul
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited June 2004
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    Paul,
    Thanks for the info!!!

    Ace
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  • lonwa
    lonwa Posts: 83
    edited June 2004
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    where are you guys going to buy your techflex (braided sleeves)?


    Just curious if you know a good website. Most of the sites I have found do not show you very good pictures of the sleeves.


    Thanks

    Lonwa
    Sometimes good command decisions get compromised by bad emotional responses."
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  • ezc
    ezc Posts: 426
    edited June 2004
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    Ionwa I purchase my tech flex from parts express. It is the easiest for me, I cant find it locally. Watt gate plug ends, iec & ac recepticals can alsobe purchased there also. They have them in hopsital grade & audio grade.
    ralm01, here some links w/pics do cable http://www.ezconnection.org/Design/Assets/images/Tjoeb/tjoeb%202.jpg
    http://www.ezconnection.org/ebay.htm
    My Mits 55" & my Yamaha dvdp uses the same type of connector. I didnt install a iec to the units but instead I made a connector to fit the units & used Kimber PK10 pc & watt gate plug ends. I have also in the past just soldered the hot & neutral wires directly to the board & shrink wrapped. The solder method is works well but you will not beable to reconnect the stock pc & connector again. In the pic with Njoe Tjoeb cdp you can see the KC PC wired to the board & the pic with the yamaha dvdp the original pc in the middle & the new pc on the left & is plugged in. I purchased the parts to make the connectors at a local electronic supply store & use watt gate solder on all solder connections. My Mits 55 uses the same type of connector to the tv main board & The same type of connector was made for the tv.
    Correction. I have used the DH lab Power plus cable on my Yamaha dvdp w/wattgate plug end hospital grade. KC PK10 used on all other equipment.
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  • pjdami
    pjdami Posts: 1,894
    edited June 2004
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    Ditto what ezc said about the source for Techflex (Parts Express). I've also purchased it from the DIYcable.com place.

    Paul
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  • Spankie101
    Spankie101 Posts: 3
    edited July 2013
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    Got bored the other day and made a few of these.

    DIYPowerCord-RJF_zps11eec3a2.jpg
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  • B Run
    B Run Posts: 1,888
    edited July 2013
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    Very nice! Tested it out yet? Looks awesome.
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